Many people have been rethinking their habits and lifestyles this year. Perhaps you’ve been thinking of incorporating more mindfulness into your lifestyle.

Have you thought about putting your life before work? Downshifting? Have you heard about slow living? Today, we’re going to look at what slow living is and 5 ways you can start a slow living lifestyle.

What is Slow Living?

Slow living is a mindset and a way of thinking. It focuses on creating a lifestyle that emphasizes quality over quantity, living more in the moment, and doing something well rather than doing it fast. The exact definition may differ depending on who you talk to but it generally includes a lifestyle where you are gaining time by doing the things that are most important to you. When you incorporate more slow living principles into your life, it helps you to slow down and focus on what’s truly important in the moment, not necessarily what’s most convenient — It is a choice of lifestyle.

Here are 5 ways to get you started with a more slow-living focused lifestyle:

1. Say “No”more or to non-essentials: FOMO (fear of missing out) is a real thing and it sometimes pushes us to do things that don’t truly align with our values or beliefs. The best thing you can ask yourself is “What is really important here?” and focusing your attention on that. That means only saying “yes” to what’s important and what aligns with your goals and values.
2. Practice being present: like focusing on relationships with yourself, and people that are important to you. Are you honestly 100% present with yourself, your needs or your family and friends' needs? Create space and margin in your life to establish these needs.
3. Get outside physically to connect with nature: Get outside however you can and really take a moment to appreciate its beauty and connect with nature. Even taking a big, deep breath of fresh air is a great, easy way to remind ourselves to slow down and enjoy the moment.
4. Defining what is important to you: Take a closer look at your choices of lifestyle, your mindset and actions, down to clothing, household items, and anything you own to see how (or if) they resonate with who you aspire to become or how you like to live.
5. Use technology as a tool: living slow doesn’t mean cutting technology out of your life completely. It’s about being more mindful of how and when you use them. Try using technology to support your wellness goals, like using a sleep app to help you through those sleepless nights or following an online nutritional intake program to create a healthier relationship with food!

The great thing about slow living is you do it the way you want to, we recommend implementing them in simple small steps to get started or seek help to achieve your lifestyle goals.

On your journey to live a more purposeful, thoughtful life, don’t forget the place you spend 8-12 hours every day: your bedroom. Choosing Natural linens for your bed is a contribution to living a healthier and slower life. Good sleep in comfortable linen bedding like Sömn linens helps you have a more relaxed day.